Summary

• Netflix's live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender has avoided the mistake of whitewashing its cast, unlike the 2010 movie adaptation.
• The casting for the live-action series shows a commitment to delivering what audiences expect and staying true to the original animated series.
• While the live-action adaptation has addressed the biggest problem of the previous movie, it still needs to avoid potential issues with pacing, character development, and staying true to the essence of the source material.

Netflix's live-action M. Night Shyamalan's The Last Airbender movie. Since Netflix's live-action take on Avatar: The Last Airbender is scheduled to release in 2024, the streaming giant is gradually removing the tapestry surrounding its potential storylines, character beats, and casting developments to keep audiences well invested. However, most details about the live-action remake remain under the covers because its release date is not close enough for Netflix to go all out with its marketing.

Owing to the availability of limited information surrounding its plot, visuals, and characters, it is hard to judge whether it will replicate One Piece's success or leave viewers disappointed like most other anime live-action adaptations on Netflix. However, regardless of how it will turn out, it already seems evident that it will avoid one crucial mistake made by The Last Airbender. It may not be able to rectify the damage caused by the 2010 movie, but avoiding this one mistake already makes it a far superior adaptation.

The Last Airbender Movie's Biggest Mistake Was Whitewashing Its Cast

The Last Airbender was initially being hailed as one of the most anticipated movies of 2010 because of the undying fame of the original animated series. However, as soon as the movie announced its cast, it was met with immense backlash — and rightfully so. The original animated series' storyline drew its inspiration from Eastern Asian art, culture, and mythology and even included direct references to many real-world historical events. Owing to this, it was surprising when a white actor was cast to play the main air-bending character, Aang, in The Last Airbender movie.

As several details in the original animated series suggest, the Air Nomads are primarily based on Tibetan Buddhist culture. Instead of wrapping them in stereotypes, the animated series does an incredible job at correctly representing everything from their practices to their attires. In contrast, by casting a white actor named Noah Ringer as Aang, The Last Airbender instantly diminished the cultural undertones and historical relevance that the animated series brought to the table. Apart from Aang, even the actors who portrayed Katara and Sokka from the original series were white in The Last Airbender, which made its whitewashing problem all the more evident.

Netflix's Live-Action Avatar: The Last Airbender Has Done A Better Job With Casting

While it is yet to be seen how Avatar: The Last Airbender will execute the original animated series' storyline in the live-action medium, its casting proves that it is on the right track towards creating a better adaptation than the M. Night Shyamalan movie. Since heritage and culture are crucial aspects of Avatar: The Last Airbender's themes, it was necessary for the show to carefully cast actors who would completely embody the original animated series' characters. By hiring Gordon Cormier as Aang, Kiawentiio as waterbender Katara, and Dallas Liu as firebending royalty, Zuko in the live-action series, Netflix has proven that it is willing to deliver what the audiences expect.

Even for the role of the primary antagonist, Fire Lord Ozai, the series cleverly cast Daniel Dae Kim, who not only voiced General Fong in Avatar: The Last Airbender season 2, episode 1 but also took on the role of Hiroshi Sato in The Legend of Kora. Sokka's casting has garnered some controversy because the actor playing him, Ian Ousley, has been accused of lying about his Cherokee heritage to land a part in the film. However, other than that, audiences have seemingly received the show's casting well, which attests to the show's commitment to not repeat the movie's mistakes and stay true to the source material's essence.

The Live-Action Last Airbender Must Still Avoid Other Movie Problems

Netflix's live-action adaptation has overcome The Last Airbender's biggest problems, but it still needs to avoid other potential issues. Since the live-action adaptation will have longer episode runtimes than the original animated series, it must avoid stretching or compressing the source material's content. The reason being that it could have some major pacing issues if it fails to follow the original animated series carefully crafted narrative flow and character development. Another potential problem with the Netflix live-action series is that the original show's creators, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, were not involved in its production.

Although they were initially a part of the show's team as executive producers and showrunners, they departed because they were not content with the way things were going behind the scenes. Netflix's live-action take on Avatar: The Last Airbender may still work even without the involvement of Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. However, the streaming platform will have to make provisions to ensure it does not drift too far from the source and only takes limited creative liberties. Apart from that, unlike the M. Night Shyamalan movie, Netflix's Avatar: The Last Airbender must balance its serious themes with humor and also make its bending scenes look realistic.